REID IT & WEEP JOSE!

TAKE nothing away from Blackburn. They are celebrating a place in next season's UEFA Cup this morning because they outfought and ultimately outplayed Chelsea on a raw Lancashire evening.

There will be grumbles, no doubt, emanating from Newcastle and Bolton that Jose Mourinho changed eight players to leave his side unrecognisable and their own chances of Europe in tatters.

But whatever side Chelsea put out, they take some beating - and especially when they are celebrating a title win once more.

It was only the spirit of Rovers and the resilience of their goalkeeper Brad Friedel that gave them what will prove a famous victory in the history of the club.

Perhaps the biggest hangover this morning will be enjoyed by Rovers' Robbie Savage, who claimed the winner on the stroke of half time, then conceded it to his midfield partner Steven Reid...and then claimed it back again later after watching the replays.

The confusion came because Savage, on 43 minutes, flighted in a free-kick from the right, that apparently drifted over the heads of everyone and into the far corner of the Chelsea net, with their defence criminally static.

Later observations though, showed that Reid actually got the faintest of touches, and he was never going to concede it to Savage...even if the Welshman got himself booked for celebrating his goal that never was.

Chelsea boss Mourinho - who called Rovers a "pub team" after a bruising encounter at Ewood Park last season - later grumbled about the nature of the victory, complaining that his side should have been awarded at least three penalties.

As usual his mean-spirited message was wide of the mark.

Hernan Crespo did have his shirt pulled by substitute Aaron Mokoena, but it was a tug that would not have felled a two-year-old, never mind a burly striker. Full marks though, for artistic impression on the dive.

Shaun Wright-Phillips might have had a stronger claim for a spot kick, but replays showed he was just outside the box when fouled by Lucas Neill.

Frank Lampard also had a strong claim as Chelsea turned the screw in search of an equaliser in the second half.

But nobody could surely deny Rovers their moment of glory, as they capped what has been a fine season under the impressive leadership of Mark Hughes.

If for the home side it was all about European football, then for the visitors it was more about the World Cup.

With captain John Terry already out with an ankle injury, Mourinho had promised to rest his two other England regulars, Lampard and Joe Cole. But on the night pragmatism outweighed bravado, and both unhappily trudged through the howling gale that swept across Ewood Park.

At least they escaped the injury curse that befell Wayne Rooney, but Wright-Phillips may not be feeling quite so relieved this morning.

This was perhaps his last chance to stake a claim for a World Cup berth, but the conditions and Chelsea's inability to impose themselves on the game in the first half allowed him only fitful flashes of his pace and verve. He later left the fray with a worrying limp.

Chelsea did have chances in the second half, with the impressive Friedel saving well from Eidur Gudjohnsen, Crespo and Lampard. Gudjohnsen also hit a post with a delicate attempt in the first half, but in truth, Blackburn looked the more hungry.

The pacey Craig Bellamy always had the edge over a subdued Chelsea defence, and he hit the bar in the first half, with David Bentley somehow inexplicably heading the rebound wide from barely four yards.

Savage, Reid and Bellamy again all had chances, as Blackburn showed no matter how dubious the winner, their progress into Europe was fully deserved.